Original Family Owner 68 GTO
 

Introducing myself.
I'm Ed from San Diego and have been lurking for quite a while. I plan to have a 68 GTO in the garage by January.
My mother is the original owner, She gave the car to me around 1985. I sold it to another family member in 1998. After 18 years of sitting after it was painted, the current owner has lost all interest in the car and I will once again be taking ownership.
Car is complete and is numbers matching but is stripped down to the shell. All original parts are in boxes and the car has been stored indoors in a heated garage. Engine was rebuilt during the interim but with an unknown cam.

Built in Newark May of 68, sold new at Erickson and James Pontiac in Yreka CA. Solar Red with red interior. Only three options, Radio, Remote mirror and Goodyear 205 R14 radial tires. I had just turned 16 a few months before its purchase and drove it often to school.
My plan is to keep it pretty close to original. Will be adding a factory AM/FM, power steering and a complete gauge package. I really like the dog dish hubcaps but will run with 15" steel wheels and tires.
I also have a 70 SS 396 El Camino in the garage. It's a well kept driver with suspension mods.
I'll be picking your brains over the next year or so but I also bring to the table some A body electrical experience and original owner knowledge.
Glad to be here.

Welcome. Great story, many of us wish we could get back the car we drove to school. Knowing the complete history is a big plus.

Very cool car with great history! Welcome

Love the red on red IN red. Welcome from another '68 lover!

What a cool history- can’t wait to see the build

Wow great car with an awesome story!

Excellent .... love to see them stay in the same family. I still have the 68 I drove when I was 17.

Welcome, Ed!
Sounds like a very cool GTO.
Looking forward to more pics and info.


:)

nice, got any more vintage pics to post?

Good Luck with your Pontiac !

Welcome. That is a nice story. Good for you.

Welcome!

Welcome aboard. 68' would be my wheelhouse of ability.

Great Story, welcome to the sight

Great story. A Solar Red '68 is tough to beat. Welcome!

Pretty damn cool!

Neat car, and an interesting color.

So does it have the 350hp 400ci engine and a three speed manual transmission? I think that was the base level configuration that year.

Thanks for all the comments. The car is currently in Northern Ca about 700 miles from San Diego. I plan to bring it home after the new year. But in the meantime I brought back with me a crewcab full of things to do. Seats to reupholster, wiring to repair, windows to refurbish, dash to restore, $$$$. I'm retired so I have some time to work on it and the El Camino.
Attached is a photo of the car when it was about a year old, complete with my Grandmother's cat. Still had the Goodyear radials on it. Another shop photo plus one from the 1980's at a GTOAA meet in Torrance.

Yes it does. Has the 3:55 non-posi axle.
First time my dad crawled under the car and saw the DB on the side of the transmission he was pretty happy. He had traded in a 64 Fairlane with a 289 HiPo and Toploader for the GTO and knew the capabilities of the transmission.

great pics I can never get enough of vintage pics. look at how nice all the body panels line up. somebody knew how to shut that hood properly or just had it lubed up really good.